Senegal reaches final 16 with 3-3 draw against Uruguay

First-time World Cup finalist Senegal hold on for a 3-3 draw against Uruguay in Group A to reach the last 16.

Reported by Indo-Asian News Service

Read Time: 3 mins

Suwon, South Korea:

First-time World Cup finalist Senegal held on for a 3-3 draw against Uruguay on Tuesday in Group A to reach the last 16 with two first-half goals from Papa Bouba Diop and another from Khalilou Fadiga on a penalty in the 20th.
Senegal finished second in Group A and will face the first-place team in Group F, which could be Sweden, England or Argentina. Denmark, which finished first in Group A after a 2-0 win over France on Tuesday, goes against the second-place team in F again, any of the three.
Group F will be decided on Wednesday.
Uruguay rallied in the second half to put Senegal under pressure with goals from second-half substitute Richard Morales in the first minute another from substitute Diego Forlan in the 69th and a penalty from Alvaro Recoba in the 88th after Morales was brought down in the area by Habib Beye.
Uruguay almost pulled out the victory and advancement to the second round in the first minute of injury time when Senegal's Lamine Diatta headed the ball off the line and, staring at an open net, Morales sent a close-in header wide.
Senegal entered with four points off a 1-0 victory over France and a 1-1 draw with Denmark. Uruguay had only one ponit after a 0-0 draw with France and a 2-1 loss to Denmark.
Fadiga gave Senegal a 1-0 lead in the 20th scored after teammate El Hadji Diouf was taken down in the area by Uruguay 'keeper Fabian Carini. Carini had little choice after Diouf broke for the 6-yard box after Uruguay defender Paolo Montero cleared a lose ball toward his goal instead of clearing it.
Diop made it 2-0 in the 26th on a textbook play and again on the counterattack. Henri Camara, accelerating down the left side and away from an Uruguayan defender, whipped in a perfect cross that Diop drove home from 15 yards.
Diop got into the act again in the 38th when ruled onside in a controversial call he hammered his 12-yard shot off the underside of the crossbar and behind Uruguay 'keeper Carini.
Uruguay substitute Morales made it 3-1 in the first minute of the second half when he chipped home a shot from Dario Silva that Senegal 'keeper Tony Sylva deflected on to Morales' boot.
The goal gave Urugauy early momentum as the South Americans pushed forward looking for more goals.
They got it in the 69th when Diego Forlan volleyed in a cracking shot from 25 yards that sailed in high over Sylva's head. Forlan had another chance in the 77th, setting the stage for the dramatic penalty equalizer.
Senegal captain Aliou Cisse started after being sidelined with a calf injury. Fadiga also returned to fitness and Camara was brought in to beef up the attack with Salif Diao missing through suspension.
Uruguay's lineup was the same as the one that held France to an unexpected 0-0 tie. Uruguay was again without top playmaker Fabian O'Neill, whose strained Achilles' tendon has not responded to treatments. He has missed Uruguay's two previous matches.
Lineups:Senegal: 1-Tony Sylva; 17-Ferdinand Coly (21-Habib Beye 63), 2-Omar Daf, 5-Alassane Ndour (12-Amdy Faye, 6-Aliou Cisse (C), 13-Lamine Diatta, 4-Papa Malick Diop; 10-Khalilou Fadiga, 19-Papa Bouba Diop; 7-Henri Kamara (14-Moussa Ndiaye 67), 11-El-Hadji Diouf.
Uruguay: 1-Fabian Carini, 14-Gonzalo Sorondo (17-Mario Regueiro 31), 4-Paolo Montero (C), 3-Alejandro Lembo, 16-Marcelo Romero (21-Diego Forlan 46), 8-Gustavo Varela, 5-Pablo Garcia, 6-Dario Rodriguez, 20-Alvaro Recoba, 13-Sebastian Abreu (18-Richard Morales 46), 9-Dario Silva.
Referee: Jan Wegereef, Netherlands.